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The 147.075 (+)
repeater is located in
the city of Knoxville, TN.
on the west side of town,
near the intersection of
Interstates I-40/75 and I-640!
This repeater has all the bells & whistles of a major coverage
area repeater, with one exception...
it has a relatively small footprint, as it is located on only
a small ridge in an area dominated by mountainous terrain.
Why locate such a great machine in this type
of environment?
Simple This machine is located in a
very heavily populated area of suburban West Knoxville, making it perfect
for local use.
It features an auto patch, a voice ID system
and emergency backup power, which make it perfect for Emergency use
in the urban areas of the city of Knoxville,
while other larger scale coverage machines
might be needed for larger-scale regional emergency communications.
The 147.075 repeater shares the building with two 10 kilowatt solid-state
transmitters which serve as backup transmitters for WIVK-FM, WNOX-FM, and
WOKI-FM. The repeater site has full emergency power, and 147.075
has an open autopatch available for amateur use. It is requested
that users ID ON and OFF when using the autopatch to comply with FCC rules.
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The 147.075 antenna is located at 280 feet on the 300 foot tower. It
is a DB-224 four-element exposed dipole array. It is fed with 7/8" foam
feedline.
The 147.075 repeater provides excellent local coverage in and closely
around Knox County, and continues to provide a open autopatch for Amateur
Radio use.
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Instructions
for using the WB4GBI Autopatch:
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Key your mic and identify yourself, with your intentions
to use the autopatch... Such as: "This is WX4ABC accessing
the Autopatch..."
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with the mic still keyed, and using your DTMF
buttons... enter the (*) key.. followed by the
7-digit phone
number. (No Long Distance numbers will
be accepted)
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Release the mic key... and listen. If the autopatch
is accessed correctly, it will repeat back to you "Accessing Autopatch..."
(followed by the number you just dialed)
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You will then hear a series of beeps... while the
machine dials your number. In a few moments, you will hear the phone
ringing... then your party will answer.
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Note: Be sure to tell them they are on an autopatch,
so they will know the conversation is being transmitted!
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Carry on your conversation as normal - releasing
your mic to hear the other party's responses.
(Note: There is a 4-minute limit to each autopatch session!)
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To hang up... simply key your mic, and press the
(#)
key -then release.
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The Autopatch will hang up the phone, then ID itself...
give the time... then ask you to "Please Identify..."
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Give your callsign to let everyone know that you
have finished using the autopatch, and have returned the repeater to normal
use.
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This repeater looks very similiar to 146.940 and
444.300, as it was constructed with Motorola "Micor" RF components.
Looking at the pictures: At the bottom of the cabinet moving up,
you can see the 30 amp power supply for the transmitter PA, then the Micor
147.675 receiver. |
Above the Micor receiver,
you can see its separate power supply. Above the receive power supply is
a separate UHF control receiver (GE MASTR "pro" series) for controlling
the repeater and autopatch remotely should the need arise.
The CAT 1000
repeater controller (which also has the autopatch) is above the control
receiver. There is also a controller panel similiar to .94 and 444.3,
but it is a "backup" controller in case the CAT 1000 fails. The control
panel is built to match the classic General Electric "KC-19" panel, and
matches the ones in .94 and 444.3.
The 147.075 exciter
is above the backup contrtoller, and the 100 watt "Micor" PA is atop the
repeater cabilnet. The Celwave (formerly Phelps Dodge) PD-497 duplexer
sits beside the repeater cabinet.
A Brief
History of
the 147.075
Repeater |
147.075 has the distinction of being Knoxville's
first privately owned open autopatch repeater.
George Shaver, K4HXD (now SK), originally put
the repeater on the air in 1982. It was placed in service at a the
residence of "Doc" Gilmore, WA4MCX (now SK), who lived on top of Beaver
Ridge in North Knox County.
Tim Berry purchased the repeater from George
in 1986, and moved the repeater to another residence of a gracious amateur
radio family on top of Black Oak Ridge... where it remained until 1992.
Tim relocated the repeater to the WUOT-FM Auxiliary
transmitter site on the West side of Sharp's ridge shortly after Tim became
the new Chief Engineer of WUOT-FM Radio in 1990. This repeater remained
there for several years, while Tim continued his work there... but he found
a new location for the repeater in 1998.
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The repeater was moved to its present location in 1998, after Tim accepted
the position as Chief Engineer of WIVK-FM and its sister stations.
At this location, the radio stations have their backup transmitters, which
make it a perfect spot for a repeater due to it's relative close-in location
and emergency backup power system.
UPDATE:
Just recently, the 147.075 repeater was outfitted
with a newly rebuilt Quintron QT-6501 transmitter! This is a 100
watt continuous-duty direct FM transmitter that was originally built for
the paging industry. This recent upgrade should make the 147.075 repater
even more durable under long-term "key down" conditions. |
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